Fantasy Football: Injury Roundup for Week 2

One thing that is a given every NFL season is star players are going to get hurt. Injuries and football go hand and hand, and with one week in the books, there are a handful of key injuries that are going to impact Fantasy football owners.

If you managed to escape week one without any of your key players getting hurt, congratulations. Just do not expect that to last all season. And if you are the owner of a player who enters week two with some sort of injury question, have no fear, as we have you covered. Below you will find a list of players who were hurt or got hurt in week one, and what it means for them going forward.

Can you trust your injured player to be ready for this week? Or are you going to have to go searching on the waiver wire for a replacement? Find out below!

Russell Wilson, Quarterback Seattle Seahawks

During the Seattle Seahawks victory over the Miami Dolphins in week one, star quarterback Russell Wilson had his right ankle stepped on, and the ailment clearly effected him the rest of the game. Tests were done after the game showed a sprained ankle, but luckily for the club and Wilson, no structural damage.

Head coach Pete Carroll claims Wilson will be able to practice Wednesday, but I would take that with a grain of salt until I see it. Wilson’s ankle will likely be swollen for a few days, but any practice participation would be a good sign heading into week two.

Even if Wilson does end up playing, make sure you have a capable backup for this week. Given the fickle nature of an ankle injury, paired with the fact that the Seahawks go into Los Angeles to take on the Rams’ defense in week two, I would be looking to bench Wilson this week. Wilson’s status will also have a major impact on whether or not you should start any other Seahawks offensive players this week.

Rob Gronkowski, Tight End New England Patriots

Rob Gronkowski seems to fight the injury bug every season, and this season is no exception. Word broke late in the week that Gronkowski did not travel with the Patriots to Arizona, and he ended up missing the season opener with a hamstring injury.

Not much is known about the extent of the injury, and given the Patriots nature of releasing information, do not expect to learn much until the weekend on whether Gronk will play this week. Thankfully for Gronk owners, the Patriots play at home against Miami at 1 this week, meaning there will be no need to play any sort of guessing games. If Gronkowski plays, you play him. If he is out, you just need a backup who does not play on Thursday night, which would consist of the Jets and Bills tight ends.

Jamaal Charles, Running Back Kansas City Chiefs

Jamaal Charles sat out week one as he continues to work back from a torn ACL he suffered last season. This week sees Charles in the same boat, as head coach Andy Reid is not confident on whether or not Charles will be on the field this week in Houston against the Texans.

But I will make this easy for Charles owners. Even if he turned out to be active this week, keep him on your bench. First off, Spencer Ware has proven he is more than capable of handling the workload without Charles. So upon Charles’ return, Ware will still be getting his fair share of carries, and the Chiefs will look to keep Charles fresh. Secondly, the Texans have a very talented defense, and returning on the road against them would not be a very favorable match-up. More likely than not, Charles will be out this week, and we will be revisiting this situation again next week.

Keenan Allen, Wide Receiver San Diego Chargers

Keenan Allen suffered a torn ACL in his right knee in the second quarter during the Chargers’ opener in Kansas City and has been placed on the IR. His season is over, and you can safely drop him and find yourself a new receiver. Teammate Tyrell Williams will likely see the biggest uptick in targets from Rivers as a result of the injury.

Sammy Watkins, Wide Receiver Buffalo Bills

Sammy Watkins is poised to be a regular on this report each week. Watkins is suffering from discomfort in his surgically repaired left foot. X-rays after the Bills’ opener against the Ravens showed no new structural damage, so this is an injury that solely revolves around Watkins’ pain tolerance. But given a football player needs his feet on every play, this is something that could crop up at any moment.

Watkins missed Monday’s practice, and given the Bills are playing Thursday against the New York Jets, Watkins is certainly going to be a game time decision at best. I would not trust Watkins this week, nor would I any week moving forward, as he could start any given week only to leave after a few plays with discomfort. Keep Watkins on the bench this week, even if he starts on Thursday (which I would not count on).

Zach Ertz, Tight End Philadelphia Eagles

Ertz is the owner of one of the more odd injuries headed into week two, having a “rib displacement in the collarbone area”. I am no expert, so I am not quite sure how a rib and collarbone can be with the same injury. None the less, Ertz is listed as day to day, and it is said he suffered the injury early in the Eagles’ game against the Browns, meaning he played a good portion of the game with the injury.

Week two sees the Eagles go into Chicago on Monday night, so fantasy owners will have a tough decision to make this week. Either make sure you own Brent Celek or Zach Miller, and you can make the decision on Monday night, or make a call without knowing Ertz’s status. I hate entering a Monday not knowing if one of my players is going to play.

So given Ertz is not a top five tight end, I would be looking at playing someone else this week at the tight end position. Go search your waiver wire if you do not like your current backup.

Chris Ivory, Running Back Jacksonville Jaguars

Entering week one, Ivory was listed as questionable with a hamstring injury. Then Ivory was declared out, and it was revealed he was admitted to a hospital for an unknown ailment. It is still not known why he is in the hospital, but he is still there and undergoing tests to determine what exactly is wrong.

Given the uncertainty of the situation, I would not be banking on Ivory this week. If he were to play, he would be splitting carries with TJ Yeldon anyways. The Jags go to San Diego to play the Chargers, but Ivory will not be on my radar this week.

Robert Griffin III, Quarterback Cleveland Browns

If for some reason you owned RG3, I would like to think it was only as a backup. If so, you will need to go out and find yourself a new backup quarterback as Griffin has been placed on IR with a fractured bone in his left shoulder, and will miss at least eight weeks. Josh McCown should be taking over under center in Cleveland.

Demaryius Thomas, Wide Receiver Denver Broncos

Demaryius Thomas suffered a hip injury on Thursday night against the Carolina Panthers and underwent an MRI. It was initially thought Thomas would seek further evaluation on the hip, but that no longer seems to be the case. Pair that with comments from head coach Gary Kubiak that the hip is doing pretty good and it seems Thomas’ hip injury is nothing too serious.

He is still seen as being day to day, and I would not be surprised if he were limited in practice most weeks. As for week two, the Broncos are home against the Colts. If active, Thomas is a must start, especially given how poor the Colts defense is. Just make sure you have another wide receiver who starts at 4 o’clock or later, just in case the injury does cost Thomas the game.

Julio Jones, Wide Receiver Atlanta Falcons

Julio Jones “tweaked” his left ankle in the Falcons game against the Tampa Bay Bucs on Sunday. It is an injury that does not appear to be major, but given Jones’ injury history it is certainly worth keeping an eye on. There is no indication it will cost Jones’ a game this week. The Falcons go into Oakland for a 4 o’clock game this week. Assuming he is active like he should be you should be deploying him as usual. Just make sure you monitor the situation each week and hope the ankle issue does not grow into anything major.

Make sure you check back in at Inscriber Magazine every day, as we will be supplying new fantasy football content as each week goes on!

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Works have appeared and featured in places such as Forbes, Huffington Post, ESPN and NBC Sports to name a few. Follow me on Twitter at @RobCobb_INSC, email me at [email protected]

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